Skip to content
  • Blog
  • Careers
  • Demo
  • Login
  • (408) 883-8053
  • [email protected]
Facebook-f
Twitter
Linkedin
  • Blog
  • Careers
  • Demo
  • Login
Menu
  • Blog
  • Careers
  • Demo
  • Login
resilic-logo
  • Products
  • Pricing
  • Resources
    • Learning Center
    • Events
  • Company
    • About
    • News
  • Contact
Menu
  • Products
  • Pricing
  • Resources
    • Learning Center
    • Events
  • Company
    • About
    • News
  • Contact
resilic-logo
  • Products
  • Pricing
  • Resources
    • Learning Center
    • Events
  • Company
    • About
    • News
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • Careers
  • Demo
  • Login
Menu
  • Products
  • Pricing
  • Resources
    • Learning Center
    • Events
  • Company
    • About
    • News
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • Careers
  • Demo
  • Login
Facebook-f
Twitter
Linkedin
  • Blog
  • Careers
  • Demo
  • Login
Menu
  • Blog
  • Careers
  • Demo
  • Login
resilic-logo
  • Products
  • Pricing
  • Resources
    • Learning Center
    • Events
  • Company
    • About
    • News
  • Contact
Menu
  • Products
  • Pricing
  • Resources
    • Learning Center
    • Events
  • Company
    • About
    • News
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • In the News
  • Press Releases
Menu
  • Blog
  • In the News
  • Press Releases

Home / Blogs / Recap: Prof. Yossi Sheffi’s Discussion on his book “The New (Ab)Normal”

Home / Recap: Prof. Yossi Sheffi’s Discussion on his book “The New (Ab)Normal”

RESILINC BLOGS

Recap: Prof. Yossi Sheffi’s Discussion on his book “The New (Ab)Normal”

Nov 25, 2020

Resilinc Editorial Team

Coronavirus Impact, Supply chain management

After more than 40 years of teaching and consulting, analyzing, and managing companies in the supply chain and logistics space, Yossi Sheffi was starting his sixth book in early 2020—on the history of supply chain innovation—when Covid-19 struck. He quickly decided that the innovation book would have to wait while he covered the unfolding crisis and examined the lessons it taught for the future of supply chains.

In a recent Resilinc webinar Sheffi summarized key findings from the resulting book, The New (Ab)Normal: Reshaping Business and Supply Chain Strategy beyond Covid-19.

According to Sheffi, the pandemic accelerated trends that were well under way before Covid-19—especially the shift to ecommerce and the growth of automation and robotics. In the second quarter, Wal-Mart’s e-commerce revenue grew by 97%, Target’s by 195% and Lowes’ by 135%. “Shopify doubled its business as small- and medium-sized retailers used [the platform] to get into the e-commerce game,” said Sheffi. “Even Facebook started getting into e-commerce.”

Airbnb for warehousing

This trend will continue, and to compete with Amazon, more companies will turn to tech platforms like Flexe—“the Airbnb for warehousing,” according to Sheffi—that match the supply of distribution center capacity with demand. “Flexe has signed agreements with more than 1,000 warehouse distribution centers,” Sheffi said. Such arrangements provide vital flexibility for growing e-commerce firms. “A firm can start with space in one warehouse in the middle of the country – near Cleveland for example – it can put some its SKUs there and advertise locally.”

Supplier reviews

 The pandemic crisis provided a perfect opportunity for customers to learn “where they have strong relationships with suppliers that will stand the test of time,” said Sheffi. “Many good companies are now going through a strategic review of their suppliers, [seeking to assess] who has the necessary capacity, who cut corners on quality, who’s in financial trouble.”

On the other side of the same coin, he urged companies, many of whom are trying to conserve cash, to “be careful not to lengthen terms of payment so much that you endanger suppliers.”

 Challenging conventional wisdom

Sheffi expressed skepticism about major changes to supply chains that have been projected to arise from the pandemic, including a shift away from just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing and inventory management and a wholesale retreat from China sourcing.

JIT “was a huge improvement” over prior methodologies,” according to Sheffi. “While it does call for minimal inventory, it incorporates resiliency and flexibility by tying suppliers more closely with their customers and enabling faster response to demand changes. It has also led to higher quality and less waste.”

Sheffi does advocate for larger inventories of PPE (of which there were consequential shortages in spring 2020) but believes this should be accomplished through a strategic stockpile program akin to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. He also suggests stress testing for healthcare providers to ensure “they can withstand a [PPE supply interruption] for a week or a month.”

 Regarding China, Sheffi’s research shows no major shift in trade away from the world’s largest manufacturing nation. He pointed out that China has already seen a flight of labor-intensive industries such as garment manufacturing, while the country’s position in capital-intensive industries has grown ever stronger—and foreign companies are highly reliant on these capabilities. “In automotive, high-tech, biomedical and other industries, companies have spent billions to develop whole supply chain ecosystems in China,” he said. “It’s not going to be easy to find that somewhere else.”

Nonetheless, he foresees U.S. geopolitical conflicts with China continuing under a Biden Administration. “One thing that Democrats and Republicans agree about is they [consider] China a strategic competitor, if not an enemy.” Security concerns around Hong Kong, the South China Sea and other issues will continue to be policy priorities, and President-elect Biden will likely be more successful than Trump at securing cooperation from allies. “It’s one thing if the U.S. is [confronting China] alone, but if Germany, France, the EU, Australia and Japan join us, that will get China’s attention.”

Accelerating Covid flare-ups call for better mapping

As the northern hemisphere settled into winter, Covid-19 outbreaks accelerated—leading to rapidly shifting government policies. In this chaotic environment, Sheffi says that supply chain professionals should find greater support from corporate leadership for investing in multi-tier supply chain mapping. “I expect it will be easier [to justify now] for the simple reasons that one can see how important it is.”

“We’re still in a situation of opening and closing, opening and closing,” said Sheffi. “It’s more important than ever to know exactly who your suppliers are, what they’re making, how those parts are tied to bills of materials, what’s the value at risk. Companies that have invested in supply chain mapping are going to do better. Companies who did not are going to realize how important it is.”

Listen to our LIVE CHAT with Prof. Sheffi: The New (Ab)Normal, Reshaping Business and Supply Chain Strategy Beyond COVID-19

 

About Resilinc

We’re the world’s leading supply chain monitoring, mapping, and resiliency solution. Over 100k organizations partner with us to take their SCRM programs from reactive to resilient.
Request Demo

Recent Posts

Blog Series: The Ultimate Guide to Supply Chain Resiliency, Part 3 – Implementation

Blog Series: The Ultimate Guide to Supply Chain Resiliency, Part 2 – Planning

Blog Series: The Ultimate Guide to Supply Chain Resiliency, Part 1 – Introduction

From roller skates to recliners, material shortages spread to more industries

President Biden’s review of U.S. supply chains is a matter of national security

Achieving enterprise-wide adoption of supply chain risk management

Resilinc Launches Predictive Purchase Order (PO) On-Time Delivery Solution

Why supplier collaboration is a win-win strategy

Recent Blogs

Loading...
Apr 06, 2021
4 MIN READ
Resilinc

Blog Series: The Ultimate Guide to Su...

Part 3: Implementing a successful SCRM Program Imagine a large electronics OEM facing a loss of hundreds of millions in...
Resiliency Program Planning, Supply Chain Resilience
Mar 30, 2021
4 MIN READ
Resilinc

Blog Series: The Ultimate Guide to Su...

Part 2: Planning your SCRM program This is Part 2 of our four-part blog series based on Resilinc’s Ultimate Guide...
Resiliency Program Planning, Supply Chain Resilience
Mar 23, 2021
3 MIN READ
Resilinc

Blog Series: The Ultimate Guide to Su...

 Part 1: Starting the SCRM Journey Wherever your organization is on the journey to a mature and robust SCRM program,...
Resiliency Program Planning, Supply Chain Resilience, Uncategorized
Read All Blogs

Who's in your supply chain?

Better visibility starts now

Email Now|Call Now|Chat Now

Receive Our Weekly Newsletter

Subscribe
resilinclogo

Most Trusted, Cognitive Supply Chain Risk Management Platform

Products

Blog

Career

  • Eventwatch
  • Riskshield
  • Cognitive Mapping
  • Supplier Capability Assessment
  • R Score
  • Business Continuity
  • CyberSCRM
Menu
  • Eventwatch
  • Riskshield
  • Cognitive Mapping
  • Supplier Capability Assessment
  • R Score
  • Business Continuity
  • CyberSCRM

Company

  • About
  • News
  • Events
Menu
  • About
  • News
  • Events

Resources

  • White Papers & Reports
  • Case Studies
  • On-Demand Webinars
Menu
  • White Papers & Reports
  • Case Studies
  • On-Demand Webinars

Follows Us

Facebook-f
Twitter
Linkedin
Sales: [email protected] Support: [email protected] Call us: (408) 883-8053
resilinclogo

Most Trusted, Cognitive Supply Chain Risk Management Platform

Company

  • About
  • News
  • Events
Menu
  • About
  • News
  • Events

Resources

  • White Papers & Reports
  • Case Studies
  • On-Demand Webinars
Menu
  • White Papers & Reports
  • Case Studies
  • On-Demand Webinars
  • Products
  • Blog
  • Careers
Menu
  • Products
  • Blog
  • Careers

Follows Us

Facebook-f
Twitter
Linkedin
Sales: [email protected]
Support: [email protected] Call us: (408) 883-8053

© 2021 Resilinc Corporation. All rights reserved.

Data Security

Privacy Policy

Thank You

Suspendisse ipsum eros, tincidunt sed commodo ut, viverra vitae ipsum. Etiam non porta neque. Pellentesque nulla elit, aliquam in ullamcorper at, bibendum sed eros. Morbi non sapien tellus, ac vestibulum eros. In hac habitasse platea dictumst. Nulla vestibulum, diam vel porttitor placerat,

Download Your Copy of The 2017 Annual Report Today

Register